Abstract Orthoptera have some of the largest genomes all insects. At same time, architecture their remains poorly understood. Comparative cytological data across a wide range taxa, even for basic parameters such as chromosome number, may provide important insights into evolution these and help answer question why species attained large genome sizes. We collected compiled more than 1,000 records...

In the northern and central part of Xinjiang (Western China) are distributed 14 species of coniferous plant bugs of these, 10 species are recorded for the first time for China. In the Mongolian Altai are 9 species: 6 widely distributed in the Palearctic, Deraeocoris annulipes (Herrich-Schaeffer, 1842), Dichrooscytus intermedius Reuter, 1885, Pinalitus rubricatus (Fallén, 1807), Atractotomus mor...

Parasites have been shown to manipulate the feeding behaviour of their invertebrate vectors, which results in an increased probability of transmission to definitive hosts. Most evidence for this hypothesis comes from protozoan species with salivary transmission but evidence for stercorarian parasite transmission is lacking. We present experimental evidence that infection of the kissing bug Mepr...

The evolution of warning coloration (aposematism) has been difficult to explain because rare conspicuous mutants should suffer a higher cost of discovery by predators relative to the cryptic majority, while at frequencies too low to facilitate predator aversion learning. Traditional models for the evolution of aposematism have assumed conspicuous prey phenotypes to be genetically determined and...

The grasshopper family Catantopidae is a well-known group, whose members include some of the most notorious agricultural pests. The existing classifications of the family are mostly utilitarian rather than being based on phylogenetic analysis and therefore unable to provide the stability desired for such an economically important group. In the present study, we present the first comprehensive p...

Conservation plantings of native wildflowers were established adjacent to highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum L.) fields to test the hypothesis that provision of resources for natural enemies increases their abundance in adjacent crop fields without increasing the abundance of pest insects. For two growing seasons, natural enemies and herbivorous insects were sampled in fields with flower...